ladykate said:
Thank you, very interesting. I'd figured it must be one of those crazy-big motors...8108 sounds like such an odd size to end up with though.
Now just imagine those motors and blades on an X8 :twisted:
550 Pilot's lounge
- Thread starter OI Photography
- Start date
Thank you, very interesting. I'd figured it must be one of those crazy-big motors...8108 sounds like such an odd size to end up with though.
Now just imagine those motors and blades on an X8 :twisted:
OI Photography said:
You could probably build it for less than 5K - anyone want to go for it? ;-}
The idea of a heavy lift quad that flies a long time is appealing. Of course, with 8 motors, it wouldn't fly as long, but you could use it to tow cars out of the snow in the winter.
So does anyone know what the weight is on the Neewer FPV skid by chance? I didn't own a scale capable of weighing such things prior to my build otherwise I would have weighed my own. I'm looking to lose some weight on this bird since it is close to the 2400 gram max now. I looked up the "legs" & "batwing" option offered by IrisAerial.com and that combo weighs in at 106.3 grams. Was hoping the difference between the two is enough to warrant spending the $47 to swap over.
U.M.
U.M.
Uncle Meat said:
I took her out today for another test flight. I'm still using the landing skids I have pictures in this thread a few post ago. I wasn't happy flying with my battery hanging front back. It was also flying crapping. I was also not happy having to have lost 2 minutes flying time. So here's what I did. If you go back to (page 31) UM has a side view photo of his FF550, the front plate that holds the GoPro has excess material on the back end that comes up against the front legs. I cut that piece off (about an inch) and pushed the GoPro back. I also cut about an inch from each rod that the GoPro is attached too. I remounted my battery back on top and placed it as far back as I could on the top deck. I took her out for a flight and she immediately took off straight on up. i was impressed. I flew her around and she's flys alot more stable. I find the battery hanging from below makes it swing like a bell if that makes any sense.
I had set my timer to 8:30 minutes and as I was coming down at about 8:15 minutes the first red light came on. By 9:10 I had her back on the ground. I have not watched the video to see how it recorded but she looked pretty stable flying around. The only bad part, I'm still 2 minutes shorter than what I use to have but the skids really make for a smooth landing. I'll post the video when I get home today from work if anyone is curious.
I threw my battery back on the charger and it was at 28%. That's another hard pill to swallow since it use to be at 35%-40% before the skids were added. I'm using a 3S 6400 mAh 35C lipo.
FangsCPO said:
Did you change the CG in the assistant when you moved the battery down? My 6s weighs 1400 grams and it is on the bottom but the top of the battery is right at CG. Essentially, the IMU is sitting right at center gravity. While I don't have that much time in on the machine, it doesn't act like a pendulum - I can horse it around a lot and it snaps right back into position.
ladykate said:
I too have had no issues with hanging my 6400mAh from the bottom. Once I had my camera & gimbal mounted I think my final settings in assist for COG looked something like this:
X: 2
Y: -2
Z: -27
She is rock solid and doesn't swing like a pendulum as noted by Fangs.
U.M.
Uncle Meat said:
I'm sorry but I'm totally confused. I was supposed to set the COG settings when I moved the battery down? I wasn't aware. I thought those setting X, Y and Z were for the GPS puck. Now you've added another element that I totally missed and was unaware of. ****.....I'm stuck at work and I really want to work on this. I think I may suddenly fall ill. :lol: I'm still not happy with my 2 minutes less flying time or as I called it....my reserve. Also, I find it rather easy to change the batteries out when on top vs. being on the bottom....but that's just me being a lazy ole retired Sailor.
FangsCPO said:
You set both. One for the GPS and one for the IMU. Centimeters from the balance point to the IMU are what you want for the IMU reading.
Copy the old setting so if you go back up with the battery it will be the way you like it and you won't have to measure it. With the battery on top, see if you can get a good CG reading (I just use my finger - when it is close I count it - actually balancing it would be a PITA). Mark the spot. Put the battery on the bottom and do it again. Subtract that distance from the old setting.
It won't be perfect but as long as its close it should work (you can always tweak it as you go, too). You can tape a small ruler to the side of the deck to use as a place to put your finger. Fortunately, for mine, there were convenient places that were also CG.
Do a calibration and then a compass alignment after you swap.
Got a question concerning the "Blink Codes" from my Naza-M. When I power it up in GPS mode I initially get the GREEN-RED-RED-RED while it looks for satellites. Within 45 seconds it will go GREEN-RED-RED, and then GREEN-RED, and finally a fast GREEN-GREEN-GREEN-GREEN-GREEN-GREEN-GREEN-GREEN as it acquires the last satellite lock. What it does next is what confuses me. After the series of repeated quick GREEN flashes I then get just one RED flash and then two GREEN flashes. Then it flashes GREEN-GREEN, GREEN-GREEN, GREEN-GREEN from that point on.
Any idea what that one single red flash after successful satellite lock means? Is it because my throttle isn't centered perhaps?
U.M.
Any idea what that one single red flash after successful satellite lock means? Is it because my throttle isn't centered perhaps?
U.M.
Uncle Meat said:
I get the same thing and have always in my Phantom and now my F550. I assume it was just resetting the homelock position again. That's why I always wait until I have the string of greens followed by just green-green. If I don't see that, I don't take off.....and so far after 185 flights in my Phantom and now 32 flights in my F550....knock on wook....no fly-aways. I would like to know what is the official interpretation of that. Anyone???
UM, the odd red flash you saw just before solid green(s) was probably just a momentary slight fluxuation in satellite lock, sometimes the number of sats can dip for a second or two.
There's two fast streams of green you should see after start-up: one indicates recording of home position for RTH etc, the other indicates recording of the direction the Phantom is pointed, for CL use. I can't remember which is supposed to be the first set of flashes and which is the second, but I think it's in the order I listed them.
If you get green-green, green-green, green-green, instead of green, green, green, it just means your throttle isn't registering as centered.
There's two fast streams of green you should see after start-up: one indicates recording of home position for RTH etc, the other indicates recording of the direction the Phantom is pointed, for CL use. I can't remember which is supposed to be the first set of flashes and which is the second, but I think it's in the order I listed them.
If you get green-green, green-green, green-green, instead of green, green, green, it just means your throttle isn't registering as centered.
OI Photography said:
I think that is what I've determined, too... but it might be apocryphal... ;-}
The number of satellites does vary at first (and for me, quite a bit on the ground in several places around here - all the way from <5 to >9 for a minute or so). You can see it if you have FPV hooked up.
ladykate said:
Bingo, I was just playing with that last night on the bench, using the OSD to show how aircraft orientation can impact GPS reception. I confess that's one of the last things I remember to watch in the display once I'm outside and flying :roll:
pHantom 2 vision user questions! transitioning to 550
I have a good bit of experience working, flying, modding, tweaking, etc, on my P2V. Frankly I am tired of the difficulty of working on the phantom, so I'm considering buying, outfitting a DJI 550. I have a few questions.
I'm considering the DJI IOSD, Zenmuse H3-3D, gopro camera, and DJI IOSD and DJI IPAD ground station modules, etc.
Given all of that gear, WITH DJI E300 Motor/ESC, what configuration of battery (two batteries in series, etc, etc) would maximize flight time? Given the most ideal battery setup (power/weight ratio, etc) what do you see as estimated flight time?
B I understand temp of batteries, how flown, age of batteries, etc will effect that time. I'm just looking for a ball park time, so I can decide whether the advantages of the 550 (easier expandability, more customizable, perhaps better camera or aircraft performance) outweigh what I see as the disadvantages, at this point (cost, decreased flight time, more complex, harder to set up).
Thanks in advance.
I have a good bit of experience working, flying, modding, tweaking, etc, on my P2V. Frankly I am tired of the difficulty of working on the phantom, so I'm considering buying, outfitting a DJI 550. I have a few questions.
I'm considering the DJI IOSD, Zenmuse H3-3D, gopro camera, and DJI IOSD and DJI IPAD ground station modules, etc.
Given all of that gear, WITH DJI E300 Motor/ESC, what configuration of battery (two batteries in series, etc, etc) would maximize flight time? Given the most ideal battery setup (power/weight ratio, etc) what do you see as estimated flight time?
B I understand temp of batteries, how flown, age of batteries, etc will effect that time. I'm just looking for a ball park time, so I can decide whether the advantages of the 550 (easier expandability, more customizable, perhaps better camera or aircraft performance) outweigh what I see as the disadvantages, at this point (cost, decreased flight time, more complex, harder to set up).
Thanks in advance.
Re: pHantom 2 vision user questions! transitioning to 550
There will be different opinions about what makes the best flight time. Generally, they will center around a bigger battery and lower weight. 4s battery - minimum gear - light landing gear (maybe stock landing gear). More efficient engines ( the E300 that is stock now seems to be getting good reviews).
The 550 flight times will probably not be very close to a Phantom V2(Vision or other). You can easily get 12 minutes with 4s and careful flying - probably a bit more with light weight. I chose not to worry about that - I've found that 9 minutes is sufficient for just about everything I do. Changing a battery is not a big deal and maybe even part of the fun (more landings and piloting).
I don't think the 'harder to set up' issue is with the RTF versions - although that comment would be true if you were making an artf. However, even that is only going to be a couple of weeks and then it will be complete. My 550 is definitely 'grab and fly' right now. It flies as quickly and easily as the Phantom. It is more stable and, of course, it is malleable - you can stick things on it and pull them off with ease. It is more stable and can survive a lost engine without crashing.
It does not replace my Phantom. In fact, I'm taking the P2 with me tomorrow to survey a potential site for another hobby I have. The P2 is much easier to transport and you can take it on an airplane - can't do that with a 550 unless you partially disassemble it.
Two different airplanes but both fun.
johnbowen said:
There will be different opinions about what makes the best flight time. Generally, they will center around a bigger battery and lower weight. 4s battery - minimum gear - light landing gear (maybe stock landing gear). More efficient engines ( the E300 that is stock now seems to be getting good reviews).
The 550 flight times will probably not be very close to a Phantom V2(Vision or other). You can easily get 12 minutes with 4s and careful flying - probably a bit more with light weight. I chose not to worry about that - I've found that 9 minutes is sufficient for just about everything I do. Changing a battery is not a big deal and maybe even part of the fun (more landings and piloting).
I don't think the 'harder to set up' issue is with the RTF versions - although that comment would be true if you were making an artf. However, even that is only going to be a couple of weeks and then it will be complete. My 550 is definitely 'grab and fly' right now. It flies as quickly and easily as the Phantom. It is more stable and, of course, it is malleable - you can stick things on it and pull them off with ease. It is more stable and can survive a lost engine without crashing.
It does not replace my Phantom. In fact, I'm taking the P2 with me tomorrow to survey a potential site for another hobby I have. The P2 is much easier to transport and you can take it on an airplane - can't do that with a 550 unless you partially disassemble it.
Two different airplanes but both fun.
Here's my flight #36 with my F550.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A1YPP0Vu58I[/youtube]
I'm using new landing skids. I cut the top bars about one inch and removed about an inch off of the panel the HERO3 is attached to. Here's a side view of how it looks.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A1YPP0Vu58I[/youtube]
I'm using new landing skids. I cut the top bars about one inch and removed about an inch off of the panel the HERO3 is attached to. Here's a side view of how it looks.
FangsCPO said:
Niiice....looks like you have it all dialed in pretty well there. Even the yaw movement was very consistent and even, far better than what I usually see with a 2-axis gimbal.
Thanks! I think I got lucky but so far so good. I'm racing two of my off-road RC rigs this Saturday. I'll be capturing some vids from the ground and air. Can't wait to see how they turn out.
Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk
Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk
Cool, I'll look forward to that! Keep the shots simple but well-framed and well-placed, to best leverage the stability the 550 provides...I think you'll have a blast using it for filming your 4WD RC runs, even more than with the Phantom. At the very least, you'll feel more like you're controlling a camera platform, instead of a hatchback with a camera strapped to it 
FangsCPO said:I'm using new landing skids. I cut the top bars about one inch and removed about an inch off of the panel the HERO3 is attached to. Here's a side view of how it looks.
The more I use this Neewer skid, the more I'm not liking it. No matter how far forward I have my GoPro on the mount If I aim the camera straight down the left side tip of the landing skid comes into view. I'm going to order this camera mount and legs next and give it a try. http://www.irisaerial.com/products.html
Anyone know a source for a F550 top plate that is actually IN stock by chance? I want to move my GPS mast from the center to the front and move the battery to the top plate. I really don't need a new top plate to do this, but since I've drilled holes in my current one I'd like a new one just so it looks neat and tidy.
U.M.
Similar threads
